Married couple among 4 new Bergen County police recruits

MAHWAH — Four military veterans––including a married couple–– were officially sworn as Bergen County police officers Tuesday night at the Bergen County Public Safety Complex in Mahwah.

With family, friends and local politicians in attendance, Christopher Tinio, Badge #308, and Wendy Tinio, Badge #309, officially became officers of the Bergen County Police Department.

Christopher, a Jersey City native who served in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan as a Marine, held the bible as his wife took the oath. Wendy, who grew up in Michigan and also served a tour of duty in the Marines, did the same for her husband of six years.

“We weren’t thinking about being in the same department,” Wendy Tinio told The Record. “It’s a challenge, but it’s exciting.”

“Everything we do, we’re very competitive," Christopher added. "We want to set an example. It doesn’t matter if you’re a man or a woman.”

Prior to joining the Bergen County Police Department, Christopher worked at Immigration Customs Enforcement and as a corrections officer at East Jersey State Prison. Wendy is currently pursuing her criminal justice degree at Bergen Community College. They have two children, Charlotte and Theodore, and live in Westwood.

The Tinios are joined by two other former members of the military.

After being deployed to Fallujah, where he trained Iraqi police and carried out combat missions as a marine, Officer David Michael Dombrowski, 27, was awarded the position of team leader and attended a leadership course in infantry training. The new police officer was also awarded a good conduct medal for his military service. Dombrowski is a native of Rutherford.

James Farrar, a 32-year-old native of San Angelo, Texas, follows in his father's footsteps as he pursues a career in law enforcement. Farrar came to Bergen County in 2012 upon completing a 12-year career in the military police. He was deployed to Iraq in 2006 and helped train military police. The University of Phoenix graduate married his wife Diana, a native of Bergen County, in 2006 and lives in Paramus.

The four recruits, part of a graduating class that counts more than 100 members, begin academy training on Friday and should be on the streets before January.